Logitech unveils first Google TV box

Logitech has unveiled its Google TV settop box, a device designed to meld the web with your television.

Dubbed Logitech Revue, the device will sell for $299.99, including a wireless keyboard controller, and it will be available in US stores before the end of the month. You can pre-order the device at Amazon.com, Logitech.com, and BestBuy.com beginning today.

Logitech CEO Gerald P. Quindlen said he expects devices to be on shelves in two to three weeks.

The settop lets you organize, search, and view broadcast television as well as content stored on other devices in the home and across the web. Using Logitech's existing Harmony Link hardware, it connects not only to your television but to PCs and other home entertainment devices and smartphones. It includes a Chrome browser equipped with a built-in Adobe Flash 10.1 plug-in, and various applications offering access to web content, including apps from Amazon, Napster, and Netflix.

"I think we can all agree that consumers would love to access all of their content on their television," Ashish Arora, vp and general manager of Logitech's digital home group said this morning during a press event in downtown San Francisco. "And that's why we're so excited about Google TV.

Early next year, the device will also offer access to the Android marketplace.

Logitech offers two wireless keyboards with built-in touchpad and additional navigation and TV controls. One is about the same size as a traditional keyboard and it's included in the $299.99 price tag. It can also be purchased separately for $99.99. The other keyboard is a much smaller handheld with back-lit keys, and it sells for $129.99.

The platform can also be operated via an app installed on Android phones. The app includes the ability to make commands via voice.

Logitech offers a $149.99 video camera that mounts on top of your television and an accompanying application for making video calls.

Unveiled this spring at Google's annual developer conference, Google TV is based on Android 2.1 — the latest version of the OS, which was originally designed for mobile devices. ®